Travel Reference
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Thirty kilometres from Abidjan, we rested at a small restaurant where I met two
Ghanaians. What ensued was a long discussion about the plight of AIDS in Côte d'Ivoire
andthegovernment'sresponsetotheepidemic.Theywereangryaboutthelackoffreedom
to protest against the government's policies on AIDS. They told us that the Minister of
Human Rights of Côte d'Ivoire was jailed for participating in an AIDS demonstration (the
government had banned all outdoor public meetings and anyone participating would be
jailed). At issue during the demonstration? How the government was covering up AIDS
cases as tuberculosis. They passionately felt the government was more concerned with its
international image and how the AIDS epidemic would scare away international investors.
They couldn't understand how a president could spend most of his time (8 months out of
the year) in Paris and run a country, They ended with their synopsis of the president as a
“…a wealthy man running a poor nation from overseas.” During our conversation I had to
clarify their misconceptions about the West
i.e.,
not everyone was wealthy. I elaborated on
issues that plagued the West from homelessness, drug addiction, incredible harsh climates
and high unemployment in the north, and so on.
We eventually said good-bye to our Ghanaian friends and leisurely made our way
into Abidjan. When we arrived in the city, Erik and I parted but planned to meet up later.
I found a place for 1,500 CFA per night with a hot shower. I left my bike in the room and
stepped outside and found a street vendor to buy my dinner. I quickly returned to my room
and unpacked all the gear from the bike and settled in for the night. I decided that I would
take a few days off to rest but more importantly I had to find a shop that sold Shimano de-
railleurs. Iwasgrowingconcernedthatthepresentsituation couldnotlastformuchlonger.
Even though I had managed to cycle 110 kilometres this day, I feared something would
eventually give- either my knees or the chain.
My days in Abidjan were spent doing errands. I went to the bank and to the Cana-
dian and Ghanaian Embassies. The staff in the Canadian Embassy was very kind and they
typedupaletterofintroductionformetotaketotheGhanaianEmbassy.Ialsometupwith
Erik to say our final good-byes for he was off to Kenya by plane. Even though we cycled
for more than a week together(ish), it wasn't emotional at all- more of a 'take care' kind of
good-bye.
When I arrived at the Ghanaian Embassy, I asked to speak to the ambassador. They
questioned why, and I explained the reason for my trip through Ghana and showed her my
various letters. She asked me to have a seat and around 2:00 p.m. she asked me for my
passport, my application and some passport-sized photos. She then told me to return the
next day (it usually takes 48 hours) to pick up the visa.
I returned to the Canadian Embassy where I paid for a phone call to my dad who
was just putting my nephew Michael in his crib. We talked about the Maltese Telethon that
mydadproduced inTorontoforthe past 25oddyears toraise money forhandicapped chil-
dren in Malta. It was good to hear his voice and I prayed that one day I would be able to
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